Kindle

Like someone else on here said, the "successful" people don't tend to go to the support groups. Why should they? They are doing fine on their own. Just keep that in mind when going back to a support meeting. You will find more of the strugglers than maybe you want. But of course that is the point... To find support from people who can relate.

You're right... We all have to live in the real world. You can't get pissed at everyone else eating normally around you. This is our choice and our new lifestyle, not theirs. Last night was my first major postop public appearance. I was at a chili Cookoff where the old me would have stuffed herself on beer and chili. Instead, I had a friend screen the chilis for me and I had one bite each of the three she deemed the best. I turned down several offers of "let me buy you a beer". Afterwards went to a friends house for cocktails. Everyone else was downing mixed drinks and despite the peer pressure, I stuck with my propel zero....it really wasn't that hard. A couple people were disappointed with my lack of "partying", but I hold no grudges against anyone. They just aren't used to the new me yet. Others expressed their congratulations and even admitted they were a little jealous of my success. And it made it all worth it to feel so comfortable in public, and not feel like the fattest girl in the room.

As I posted before, my first NSV was my rings all fitting again. Now they are actually loose. And I am down two full pant sizes (loose). And every single shirt in my closet fits! I was down to just 3 nice shirts that I could squeeze into, so essentially my wardrobe has increased 10- fold! And last week while filling out paperwork in the gastroenterologist's office, I realized I was crossing my legs and writing with the clipboard resting on my knee! And I just ordered a seat shrinker adapter for my saddle because my butt is too small! And I have to go to a Chili Cookoff fund raiser tonight (I'm on the board of the local animal shelter) and I get to wear my nice boots because they now slide over my chubby calves, and my very fancy, embossed leather Cripple Creek jacket that I can now zip up over my boobs! Yeah!!

Ditto... I don't have knee issues myself, but I have four friends that had to have TKR. 3 of them have never been fat and 1 was only slightly overweight. Once it's bone on bone weight isn't really a factor whether you need surgery or not. Weight loss will greatly help recovery, though.

You are right on schedule for the dreaded "3 week stall"... Don't get discouraged, stalls happen to everyone. I only weigh 1x week and I'm almost 3 months out. my last 3 weights were 184, 187, and 185. And that was while being sick and not getting more than 500 calories/day. I'll weigh tomorrow, and may or may not have lost. I'm not too worried about it, because in the meantime, my jeans went from snug to loose. So "stuff" is happening even if the scale doesn't say so. (I say return the scale. Not worth it if it makes you stress)

It happens... 3 weeks ago I was 184. The following week I was 187. Last week I was 185. This was all while I was sick from my diarrhea meds and barely getting 500 calories/day. Definitely not meeting protein or fluid requirements. But in those 3 weeks my size 18 pants went from snug to loose. Hydration status can play a big role, too. I gained 11 pounds in 1 day after receiving IV fluids for dehydration. The battery in my scale went dead even before surgery and I won't replace it. Weighing once/week at work keeps me from obsessing. I weigh in tomorrow so I'll see if I'm out of my stall/gain. Good luck. This will work. Just stick to the plan and have faith.

I rest my head on my horses' shoulders and sniff all the time! And even though they don't have a horse smell, scentsy does make a "weathered leather"

She's the reason I had the surgery! No more having to haul my fat ass around the mountains for her.

What foods have you been trying? What Meds have they had you on so far? Have you had a barium swallow or scope to find out what could be going on? I've gone through several weeks of nausea (from the metronidazole I was taking for a colon infection, not from my sleeve), so I know how miserable that feeling is. Hope you can get some relief. Be a squeaky wheel till they figure out what's wrong.

I actually liked it preop. Dipped green veggies in it and my favorite was mixing it in tortilla soup broth base. But post op I wasn't as much of a fan. I still used it all...mixed in tortilla broth and cream of chicken soup and even poured over eggs, but it just wasn't as yummy as before and I won't buy anymore. I do still like their unflavored powder and strawberry sorbet and chicken soup.

I didn't start puréed until 18 days out and even then it took a week or so before I could tolerate more than 1-2 tbls.

It's so easy to shift the blame of a surgical complication on something else, so the stats will never be accurate. For example, if you have a hip replacement, and then develop an infection, the infection could spread, and you could become septic, resulting in organ damage or shut down. Your COD would be kidney failure, heart failure, septicemia, etc. not "hip replacement surgery". Or for us, say you become dehydrated because of severe diarrhea and you can't drink enough because your sleeve is so small. You decide not to go to the ER for fluids and you die from kidney failure. Your COD would not be "WLS". Or you do actually have a direct complication like a leak and you chose to go to another doctor for treatment. Your original surgeon would not include your complication in his stats because he never treated you for a leak. And again, what do they consider a complication when collecting their stats? Only leaks and strictures? How about depression, GERD, constipation, diarrhea, alcoholism, gall stones, etc?

I started eggs at 3 weeks out. But they always seemed too dry and very chewy, so I kind of got sick of them. Just this week I started craving my grandma's scrambled eggs. She was very thrifty and always added water to make them "go further". She also tended to cook on a lower heat skillet. Not only did this give them that distinctive "grandmas eggs", flavor, they ended up being very melt in your mouth soft. Definitely better than the chewy version I wasn't liking.

Bummer that your reflux has reared it's ugly head again. Have you talked to anyone at OCC for additional things to try for your nighttime reflux? Friends of mine have found better relief from other PPI's (Protonix works best for them). Or maybe an antacid like Rolaids or Maalox taken just before bedtime could help so you wouldn't have to take as much PPI. Good luck and congrats with your progress!

My doc closed the drain hole with steri strips and told me to just let them come off on their own. My other incisions were closed with glue. Took about a week for the glue and strips to all come off. Meanwhile I would just wash as usual in the shower.

Did/do you have constipation issues? I emailed the OCC for recommendations on what to take but haven't heard back yet.I have a Clostridial infection in my colon, so, no I am definitely experiencing the OPPOSITE of constipation. But even up to 5 weeks out (when I got the infection), I had daily soft, formed stool. Constipation does seem to be the norm post-op, though. A lot of posters have mentioned taking miralax, Metamucil, benefiber, and milk of magnesia. And getting more fluids.

I was the same way, I was too full to do both. I made fluids my priority, but tried to make everything I drank have some protein. In fact, I didn't actually eat anything solid until I got at least 30 oz fluid in for the day (once I ate I was full for hours and drinking was really tough). Made my shakes with skim milk instead of water, added Unjury unflavored to soups, etc". I'm 2 1/2 months out and still struggling with getting enough protein, but because of my diarrhea and dehydration issues, fluids are still my #1 priority.

I wore elastic waist pants for almost 2 weeks. It wasn't because of the incisions... They never bothered me. But my jeans waistband put pressure on my already swollen, gassy belly, which was uncomfortable. My work partner was in the same situation after her lap hysterectomy a few weeks ago.

Saw a gastroenterologist today about my C. diff infection. He wants to put me on vancomycin, which still only has a 50% success rate. We also talked about doing a fecal transplant which has a 90% success rate. The downside is insurance won't pay for it until all other options are tried. Then he sent me down the street to the infectious disease center. They are currently involved in several clinical trials for C. diff treatments. Apparently the CDC is very concerned with the rise in cases. .. They are calling it the new MRSA. Basically a result of over-prescribing antibiotics. Used to be limited to hospital and nursing home patients, but now it's everywhere. This clinic alone sees 10 cases/week. I am eligible for one of the trials, but I would have to wait and get diarrhea again before they could start treatment and the clinic is an 1 1/2 hour drive from my house. Not something I really want to do since diarrhea = dehydration = feeling like shit = more IV fluids and Travel logistics would also make it hard for me to comply with all the followup visits. I talked to my PCP about the options and he thinks I should just go with the fecal transplant and pay for it myself. He offered to do it himself and volunteered his wife as the donor. "All we need is a blender and an enema bag!" But that's a story for another thread So I am starting the vancomycin (2 weeks) and looking at the costs for a fecal transfer. My deductible is so high I would probably end up paying for it all myself anyways after waiting weeks for insurance to finally approve it.

Clostridial difficile can be part of your "normal" flora, but when you take antibiotics, they often kill off your good bacteria, and the C. diff overgrows. The toxins it gives off is what actually destroys the lining of your colon, resulting in watery diarrhea. Extreme, untreated cases can even result in colon erosion and perforation. In my case, I was on 5 days cefexima antibiotic (routine postop treatment) and then I got a tooth abscess 1 week later and was put on 10 days Clindamycin. The infectious disease doc I talked to said clindamycin is one of the main culprits of C. diff outbreaks. To make matters worse, I am a vet tech and animals carry the same Clostridial strain that makes us sick. I have no doubt I've been exposed multiple times through the years, thus setting up the C. diff flora in the first place. Ironically, we have Clostridial vaccines and anti toxins available for cows, goats, etc., because they will literally drop dead from the infection if they get it. The clinical trials I talked about are for developing the same types of drugs for people.

Everyone looks so great! I just posted my pictures here http://www.bariatricpal.com/topic/300416-first-before-and-after-pictures/

Thanks everyone, I'm really psyched with my success so far. And it's official, I am stalled. Weekly weigh in showed 185, which puts me 1 pound up from when those pics were taken almost 3 weeks ago. I have no doubt it's from complete lack of calories. Other than a few random days, I know I haven't gotten more than 500 calories/day in the last month. The metronidazole makes me SO sick I can barely eat or drink anything. Today I'm so nauseous I can't even swallow my own saliva...I'm walking around with a spit cup. I see the gastroenterologist tomorrow so I stopped the metronidazole this morning. He's going to have to figure out a new plan anyways. At this point I'm making mental deals with the Universe that I would be happy to not lose another pound as long as this infection goes away.

Thank you so much Kindle. Wow you nailed it on the RX..... my NEW doctor did prescribe sucralfate (Carafate). It is making a huge difference for me - I can get down fluids. Long week but feeling better - it is an ulcer and not perforated. got fully checked out and rehydrated to boot. Thank you again. Glad you got a diagnosis and are feeling better.

I just posted mine here... http://www.bariatricpal.com/topic/300416-first-before-and-after-pictures/

If you're having a specific viral diarrhea and your doc OKs it, then yes.... But not all diarrhea is the same - if you might have food poisoning for instance, Imodium isn't a good plan. Definitely check with your doc first!!! I didn't go for about 48 hours, then finally am back on track. Elfnow is right. My recurring diarrhea is from a Clostridial infection and the last thing I should take is Imodium. This particular bug produces toxins that need to come out, not sit around in my colon. And there's only one way out :{